Friday, April 28, 2017

Romance author
Emily Mims is here today and we’re
chatting about her new contemporary novel, Smoke.

During her
virtual book tour, Emily will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble
(winner’s choice) gift card. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your
chances of winning, feel free to visit
her other tour stops and enter there, too.

Bio:

Author of thirty romance novels, Emily Mims combined her
writing career with a career in public education until leaving the classroom to
write full time. The mother of two sons and grandmother of six, she and her
husband Charles live in central Texas but frequently visit grandchildren in
eastern Tennessee and Georgia. She plays the piano, organ, dulcimer, and
ukulele and belongs to two performing bands. She says, “I love to write
romances because I believe in them. Romance happened to me and it can happen to
any woman-if she’ll just let it.”Welcome, Emily. Please share a little
bit about your current release.Smoke is the second offering in the Smoky
Blue series. Concert violinist Francesca Giordano is hiding out from her
would-be assassins by posing as a bluegrass fiddler. She finds herself falling
for the much older, charismatic bluegrass singer Cooper Barstow, knowing she
can’t stay with him forever.

What inspired you to write this book?

Each book
in the Smoky Blue series features a heroine who plays a different instrument. I
thought it would be fun for the fiddler to have a ‘fish out of water’ story.

Excerpt from Smoke:

Cooper hit
his front door and took the quickest shower on record. Still, he was almost a
half hour late by the time he pulled into Chessie’s driveway. Hopefully she
would understand. He was about halfway across the yard when he heard music
coming from somewhere inside the house. He slowed down and stopped, listening
in astonishment to the outpouring of a violin, a violin in the hands of an
incredibly gifted musician. Who was playing the violin? Was Chessie a closet
classical music fan? Was that a recording, or was that Chessie herself making
this incredible music?

Cooper glanced in the window and his
mouth fell open. It was Chessie. She was standing in front of the window in her
pink cotton robe, her fingers flying over the strings so fast they were a blur
and her bow moving nimbly over the strings as she made that violin sing. It was
Chessie making that incredible music. Music that Jake never in a million years
could have made. Music that he himself could never have made. Music that
required more talent and technique that she would ever need as a bluegrass
fiddler. Music that somehow seemed strangely familiar, even though he didn’t
think he’d ever heard it before. Cooper suddenly thought back to his initial
reaction to her, the first time he heard her play. He wondered then why a woman
of her talent played bluegrass music.

Now he knew. She didn’t play just
bluegrass music. She played classical music too. And she played it wonderfully.

Chessie Hope was not the simple
bluegrass musician she presented herself to be.

What exciting story are you working on
next?

My fourth
book in the Smoky Blue series is with my beta reader. I have written plots for
four more to be written in the next year and a half.

When did you first consider yourself a
writer?

July of 1982
when Anne Gisony of Candlelight Ecstasy called me offering me a contract for
‘Portrait of my Love’.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's
your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find
time to write?
I write ‘full time’ in that I’m retired from public education. I don’t spend a
full day at the word processor, however. My prime writing hours are between one
and six in the afternoon, maybe seven if I’m on a roll, and I seldom work more
than three or four hours during that time period. If I’m writing plot I don’t
work anywhere near that long.

What would you say is your interesting
writing quirk?

Nearly
every hero I’ve ever written has been based in some way on my husband. He’s a
sweetheart of a man and my heroes tend to be that way also.

As a child, what did you want to be
when you grew up?
As a young girl, I dreamed of being a teacher. I briefly flirted with being a
doctor when I was in college, but did my student teaching and fell in love with
the classroom. (Interesting story here. I never even considered writing as a
child. I took one creative writing course in college. The professors told me I
had no talent and to go back to the science department. I invited them to my
first autograph party. They came.)

Thursday, April 27, 2017

Romance
author Linda Nightingale joins
me today and we’re chatting about her new paranormal book, Her General in Gray

During her
virtual book tour, Linda will be awarding black
diamond earrings and an e-book of Her
General in Gray (International Giveaway) to one winner, and a second winner
will receive a digital choice of one of the author's backlist during the tour.
Both winners will be randomly chosen. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your
chances of winning, feel free to visit
her other tour stops and enter there, too!

Bio:

Born in
South Carolina, Linda has lived in England, Canada, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale,
Atlanta and Houston. She’s seen a lot of this country from the windshield of a
truck pulling a horse trailer, having bred, trained and showed Andalusian
horses for many years.

Linda has
won several writing awards, including the Georgia Romance Writers Magnolia
Award and the SARA Merritt. She is the mother of two wonderful sons, a retired
legal assistant, member of the Houston Miata Club, and enjoys events with that
car club. Among her favorite things are her snazzy black convertible and her
parlor grand piano. She loves to dress up and host formal dinner parties.

Please share a little bit about your current
release.

Her General in Gray is not so much about the Civil War
as it is about a woman and a ghost—like the Ghost and Mrs. Muir, a movie
starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison, made in 1947, the same year I was born.
I saw it later when I was a toddler. The movie is the inspiration for Her General in Gray. I wrote the story
in response to a call for ghost stories from The Wild Rose Press and set it in
one of my favorite places—Charleston, South Carolina, and the surrounding area
which is called the Low Country—where Spanish moss festoons the giant oaks and
crickets sink at night while fireflies wink.

Excerpt from Her General in Gray:“Stand aside, spook.” Dudley marched into the room, made as
if to push past him, but Sib stood his ground. Folding his hands in
supplication, he begged the woman he’d wounded to understand. “God knows,
Autumn, I didn’t mean to hurt you. The whole ugly thing is his fault.” His
finger jutted at Sib. “If he hadn’t challenged me to a duel—”

Grabbing the other man by his knit shirt, Sib prepared to
frog march him back the way he’d just come. “She doesn’t want to see you,
Dudley. Your very presence is disturbing and harmful.”

“Let her be the judge of that.” Dudley tried to wrest free.

From the bed came a weak cry that froze them in place. “Stop
it.You’re both upsetting me. The two of
you in one room mix as well as oil and water. Sib, leave. Beau, stay.”

Sib freed Dudley, turning to gape at Autumn. Why was she
ordering him out, siding with, the traitor? The redhead dusted off his clothing
and straightened his shirt. His triumphant expression tempted Sib to smash a
fist into his mouth, wiping away his gloating smile.Instead, he offered Autumn a quick bow.

“I’ll be outside the door if you need me.” Why had he given
this stranger the power to so damage his feelings? Because she can call me into corporeality? Perhaps, being a ghost
wasn’t as bad as he’d thought. That she should take his killer’s side hurt more
than he believed possible.

She nodded, refusing to meet the question in his eyes.He spun on his heel, walked calmly across the
room, and closed the door without looking back.

But Sib left a vital part of his heart in that sickroom.

What exciting story
are you working on next?

A sequel to
my book Love for Sale about sentient
androids indistinguishable from human, with human emotions, and programmed to
love. The sequel is Life for Sale. It
is coming along slowly because life gets in the way. I’m also in the galley
stage for Gylded Wings. In GW, the
most famous angel of all tells the story in first person. It is a dark fantasy
from the Black Rose line of The Wild Rose Press.

When did you first consider yourself a
writer?

I wrote as
a youngster, received some very unkind criticism, and didn’t pick my pen back
up for over 30 years. My first book was published in 2012, and that’s when I
considered myself an author.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's
your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find
time to write?

I’m a
retired legal assistant and am lucky enough to be able to write full-time. I
also write copy for an advertising agency and that can be challenging while at
the same time fun. My typical workday varies depending on life and work for the
agency. Sometimes, I might not write for days and some days I am able to write
the entire day. I write best early in the morning—say 3 or 4 AM.

What would you say is your interesting
writing quirk?

I like wine
with my meals and wine with my writing.

As a child, what did you want to be when
you grew up?

A famous
horsewoman.

Anything additional you want to share
with the readers?

I bred, trained
and showed the magnificent Andalusian horse and almost but not quite achieved my childhood goal.

Wednesday, April 26, 2017

Paranormal
romance author Maya Tyler is here
today and we’re chatting about her new book, A Vampire’s Tale.

During her
virtual book tour, Maya will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble
(winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for
a chance to win, use the form below. To
increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit
her other tour stops and enter there, too.

Bio:Maya Tyler, wife and mother of two boys, writes paranormal
romance with a twist. Her debut novella Dream Hunter was released in
December 2014. Her second novel A Vampire’s Tale released on March 22,
2017. She’s a romantic and believes in happily-ever-after. Being an author is
her lifelong dream. She enjoys reading, music (alternative rock, especially
from the 90’s), yoga, movies and TV, and spending her free time writing and
blogging at Maya’s Musings.

Please share a little bit about your
current release.A Vampire’s Tale focuses on heroine Marisa Clements who is a struggling
writer. Unknown to her, a paranormal skeptic, a vampire has been influencing
her life path. This is not any ordinary vampire. Corgan Halton is ancient and
powerful with the ability to see the future. He wants to tell his story and end
his life. He chooses Marisa to author his tale. But his presence in her life
puts her into danger, the helpless target for Corgan's enemies. It takes a
coordinated group (of wizards and vampires) effort to fight the enemy. During
the progression of the story, Marisa and Corgan fall in love - the emotions
intensified by the high-pressure, dangerous situation they find themselves in.

What inspired you to write this book?I’ve always been fascinated with vampires. I’ve read the books, and watched
countless movies and TV shows about them. They are fascinating creatures and,
despite their blood-thirsty, murderous natures, Hollywood casts them as heroes.
Every author has their own version. From “sleep in a coffin during the day and
hunt at night” to the possibilities of day-walking and reproduction. Than you
factor in their interactions with other supernaturals… I think some of the
concepts bear more merit than others so I, too, created my own version.

“For your
information, I can tell the difference between truth and the Hollywood version.”

Corgan looked at
her with a raised eyebrow.

“I can,” she
insisted. “No coffins, blood with healing properties, flying, super speed, super
strength, immortal, mind-reading, fortune-telling, death by sun…” She looked at
him and tilted her head. “Why couldn't I compel you to leave my apartment that
first night?”

“You could have,
if that's what you'd really wanted.”

“Oh.”

“Can anyone enter
the home of a vampire then?”

“Only if the
property is in the name of an undead.”

“Is yours?”

“No.”

“Oh. What about
holy water, wooden stakes…”

He laughed. “Are
you thinking of doing me in?”

“No,” she gasped
in horror. “I would never—”

What exciting story are you working on
next?My next project may very well be a sequel to A Vampire’s Tale… I’m also working on a prequel to my first
paranormal romance Dream Hunter.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?

When I
first became published in 2014. Before I published a book, I wrote stories and
I blogged, but it was more of a hobby. I still write as a past-time, but now I
have an author platform – website, blog, social media presence – and it’s
evolved into more than a sideline project.

Do you write full-time? If not, what do
you do other than write and how do you find time to write?I don’t write full-time… I have two busy little boys who occupy most of my
time. My family is definitely my priority. I make time for other interests like
rock concerts and musical theatre. Writing time is carved out of “my time” either
early morning or after the kids go to bed.

What would you say is your interesting
writing quirk? I love clichés and often work them into my stories, even if
they are ultimately omitted during editing.

As a child, what did you want to be when
you grew up? Writer, actress, lawyer, in that order. I ended up going to
business school.

Tuesday, April 25, 2017

Gene Scott, a retired English and
reading teacher, was born and raised on the prairie of Western Illinois, and
has lived in Johnson City, Tennessee for thirty years with his much better
half, Lana.

Welcome, Gene. Please tell us about your current
release.
Here’s the blurb that describes the topic:

“The scourge of opiate addiction is deeply woven throughout world history, and
the U.S. Civil War alone created
roughly 200,000 addicts who spent their remaining years navigating shattered
limbs and unstable minds.

…Fast-forward a
century-and-a-half.

A 2014 report in in the American Society of Addiction Medicine
revealed that 1.9 million Americans were addicted to prescription opioids, and
that 18,893 lost their lives to opium-based pill prescription that single calendar
year. Fifty-one American lives are lost each day.

Jellybeaners is a contemporary novel set in the heart of
Appalachia, revealing the money ties, political corruption, wasted lives, and
overall cash-churning nature of the prescription pill culture from perspectives
spanning both sides of the law.”

The audience? Young adult readers with a literary bent and a thirst for
knowledge about the intricacies of the pill mill trade.

What inspired you to write this book?First, I’m an avid motorcyclist attempted to ride the TAT – the Trans
America Trail – running from Tellico Plains, Tennessee to Portland, Oregon. The
one trail supposedly composed of dirt roads cutting clear across America.

Two buddies and I took off on this adventure in the spring of 2013 thinking
we’d cover Tennessee and Mississippi first and then would decide if we wanted
to continue.

But the East Tennessee section is mostly crumbling asphalt country roads.

I rode a 650cc Honda dirt bike with knobby tires – thinking we’d be on dirt -- and
while dropping down a steep asphalt stretch near Estill Springs, Tennessee I touched
the rear brake (the road was slick after a light rain on the oily tarmac) and
went down, shattering my left knee replacement. The accident occurred on the
same day as the Boston Marathon Bombing, so I felt little sympathy for myself
as I watched people with missing limbs successfully rebuild their lives as I
rehabbed. Inspiration!

This was my first serious motorcycle accident in forty-five years of riding,
but it taught me a valuable lesson.

Anyway, I fell in love with the Cherohala Parkway and Tellico Plains, which
became the setting for Jellybeaners (“Kituwah
Falls”) due to its natural beauty and proximity to Knoxville, the pill mill
epicenter of East Tennessee.

Secondly, during the evolution of this novel, our family lost two friends to
opioid addiction, both in their early twenties, both brilliant, handsome,
career-minded men who would have contributed much to society. One was an
artist, the other a just-graduated aeronautical engineer.

That sealed the deal.

If I could research this issue, put out the facts, and help people cope with
the situation through the experience of these characters, it would be worth the
effort.

Real-life Sylvia Hofstetter was arrested and indicted in March of 2015 –
exactly two years after I began researching opioids – for running a $12 million
dollar prescription pill operation, which ended up taking at least nine lives.

But since I’d started the
book in 2013 and Sylvia’s evil empire emerged two years later – and was
significantly different in several ways – I went ahead and published. Most of
my research came from Georgia and Chattanooga newspapers reporting on a Dalton,
Georgia bust before the pill mills actually migrated north into database-free
pill-hungry East Tennessee.

Hofstetter sits in jail awaiting trial; Odessa, smarter and savvier, escaped to
Cuba with her drug patróns, husband, and miniature Chihuahua Buladeen. There
are many differences between the real and the imagined in this novel, but it
makes my hackles rise whenever I think about how writers often conjure what’s really happening out there through
interviewing people, digging through libraries, and reading regional
newspapers.

For example, the government investigated Tom Clancy – a bored insurance
salesman who cranked a blank piece of paper into his office typewriter for
kicks and started writing The Hunt for Red October – because
it appeared he held access to unauthorized information. But they dropped all
charges when he proved to them that he’d pulled it all together at the library.

Which is possible due to the openness of American society and the Freedom of Information Act. May the
current assault on our free access to information die a natural death; these
are scary times, indeed. Fake news! Once Hitler controlled the media, it was
over for Europe. We must remain vigilant.

Unfortunately, Jellybeaners will remain topical for years
because opioid addiction is now being treated with: opioids. Which is quite
controversial in Johnson City, where I live, as methadone and suboxone clinics
are popping up like spring mushrooms.

Excerpt from Jellybeaners:The bent, rundown shack, patched
and cobbled with gray pieces of crating and splintering brown pallet board,
windows covered with ripped opaque plastic, squats in a heap off Stout Street,
coal smoke twisting out its chimney like vapor from an ebony nostril.

Three children wail
hysterically, run in circles, pull their hair, and scream at their father,
resting on his knees beside the dilapidated rust-brown ’92 Plymouth Horizon,
the driver’s door flung open.

A school bus squeaks to a
halt and four children bounce off, stop in their tracks, and stare open-mouthed
at the scene.

Vane Sarge Walker pulls up in
his beat-brown 2001 Chevrolet pickup. A trained emergency medical technician,
volunteer firefighter, long-retired military serviceman, and recently retired
Forest Service ranger, he lives nearby on a fourth-generation family farm.

The Mount Vernon Volunteer
Fire Department’s red-light-flashing, chartreuse EMS vehicle approaches, the
wail of its siren whining faintly, building in slow crescendo as it roars down
the twisting mountain valley cut by the ancient Tellico River, which falls down
the mountain grade toward the village of Kituwah Falls.

The dirt driveway, strewn
with clinkers— cindery particulate chunks of burnt coal dragged out of the
leaky furnace and tossed into the potholed driveway— steal Sarge's attention.

A homemade doll mother Sizer
crafted and gifted her three-year-old Ashley the previous Christmas sits with
its broken neck propped against the largest clinker, the head mashed flat.

Jumping out of his pickup,
Sarge purposefully fixates on the doll, briefly ignoring the cacophony, takes a
few seconds to collect his wits, and then slowly turns to face the inevitable.

The toy’s face, black-button
eyes fixed on eternity, glistens wet-red in the short March dusk, staring
directly into a gunmetal sky. A dirty-black tire track ends at its chin.

Sarge can neither swallow the
sob nor fight back the wave of salt water cascading down the stubble on his
cheeks before he turns to face the disemboweled heap lying in the driveway
beside the driver, wrapping, then unwrapping his arms across his chest, choking
between screams.

Poor
Ashley. One more notch on the pill mill tree of shame, thought Sarge.

This
couldn’t go on. Someone had to put a stop to this…

We’re going to pull those sonsabitches out by the roots, come
Memorial Day.

Studying a raven circling
high over the ridgeline to the east, he swore to himself:

Or die trying.

What exciting story are you working on next?A novel based on a true story titled,
Packages.

An East Tennessee high school kid (who just happens to love motorcycles) grows
up in a wonderful small town where life is good and expectations are high. He
enjoys excellent parents and a spiritually sensitive sister.

However, packages start arriving addressed to his friends in the neighborhood,
packages mailed from Thailand holding return addresses from the older boys in
the neighborhood – brothers, cousins, and friends -- now stationed in Vietnam.

Suddenly, the landscape changes and readers are taken for a ride through the
late Sixties that will make their hair stand on end.

Think “Born of the Fourth of July” meets “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?When I tore the meniscus in my left
knee back in high school, I couldn’t play sports my senior year, so I covered
local events for the local hometown paper.

My basketball coach –
magnanimously -- encouraged me to write.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your workday
like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to
write?
I’m a retired English teacher. Wanted to be a journalist, but the school I
attended – a regional university – sported a weekly newspaper and a journalism
faculty riddled with dementia, poor geezers with cigarettes twitching in their
lips and ancient coffee stains on their shirts.

The English faculty was at
least twenty years younger and hot-to-teach, so I gravitated into their arms. One
professor, from Estonia, knew six languages. One time I was in his office, and while
he looked at my work, his children would wander in one-at-a-time and he’d address
them – each in a different language, while he explained the Greek derivation of
words I was using. We take our public education for granted, I think.

So I ended up teaching English
and reading for nearly three decades, and now spend about a third of my free
time putting words on paper. Volunteer work, motorcycling, photography, and
travel eat up the remainder.

I write with a pen in the morning to slow my brain down, and then expand upon
those ideas with the keyboard in the afternoon.

The first draft then
undergoes massive editing. Jellybeaners
was originally 90k words, but I cut it to 65k before sending it to Vince Dickinson, my
editor, who cut it to 60k. By the time the second editor, Zee Mondee was finished, we
published at 52,000 words.

Personally, I believe a lot of Indie novels dilute the market because they are
not professionally edited.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?I’m not sure how to answer that, so
I’ll speak to what I believe is a common rookie mistake for beginning novelists
like myself. Once you get into the groove as a writer, and the words flow with
ease, you realize you’re a little mini-god -- small g-- and immediately your
pages become overcrowded with characters and backstory. It’s a temptation that
most novelists have to tame.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A policeman. Motorcycles! Guns! Chases!

But when the reality of the profession struck home -- especially after I read The Onion Field by Joseph Wambaugh -- I
decided that reading and writing
about motorcycles, guns, and car crashes might be more pragmatic.

Not that I don’t admire people who put themselves in the line of fire for our
safety. God bless the great majority of these peacekeepers, who are highly professional
and responsible. Like always, it only takes one turd to mess up the whole punch
bowl.

Anything additional you want to share with the
readers?
I’m sixty-years old and still dreaming, still looking for the next adventure.
The only limit to what you can do lies between your ears.

Monday, April 24, 2017

During his
virtual book tour, Michael will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble
(winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for
a chance to win, use the form below.
To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit his other tour stops
and enter there too!

He's
written ten books, including the best-selling Brood X, Stillwell, The
Flip, The After House, The Hanging Tree, Witches Protection Program, Pokergeist, The History Major and the Battle for Darracia series. Michael’s
books are on the Amazon best-seller list and have also won numerous awards.
Additionally, he is a screenwriter with 14 specs under his belt. Michael
resides on the North Shore of Long Island with his wife and children.

Stillwell:
A Haunting on Long Island, The Hanging Tree, and Schism: The Battle for
Darracia have all been named to Foreward Reviews Book of the Year Awards. His
newest book, The History Major, has been taking readers and reviewers by
storm.

Welcome, Michael. Please share a little
bit about The Flip.

Julie and Brad Evans are house
flippers. They buy low, clean out the old occupants junk, and try to make a
profit. Enter Hemmings House on Bedlam Street in scenic Cold Spring Harbor,
Long Island. Too good a deal to pass up, but with an ominous secret. The old
Victorian Mansion has dwellers that do not want to be dispossessed. As the
house reveals its past, will the couple's marriage survive The Flip?

What inspired you to write this book?

I was inspired
by the idea of what impact we have in creating our destiny.

Excerpt from The Flip:Julie started demolition on a bathroom in one of the many
bedrooms. She needed to lose herself in some work. She was losing her mind.
Images of last night with her husband played like a movie in her head. The
bodies were familiar, yet at the same time, they were not. The whole episode
had a dreamlike quality, and for now, Julie wasn’t sure what part of what they
had done was real or from her imagination. It was better to keep busy, think
about things to keep her occupied, so her head wouldn’t explode.

She trudged upstairs and started working in the first of the
guest bedrooms. It was an en suite, perfect for a bed-and breakfast. Why
couldn’t Brad see that? she wondered. She lifted out the toilet, carefully
pulled a rusty medicine cabinet from the wall, and started chopping at tiles on
the floor, both of her tiny hands whacking away with a giant mallet. They had
decided that nothing was salvageable in this bath. She dragged the fixtures out
of the small bathroom to a cleared corner in the bedroom. It was hot. Sweat
trickled down her back. She was wearing an oversized T-shirt and yoga pants
from Target. She fanned herself, smiling when she thought of the pretty ladies’
fan in her makeshift bedroom. Julie went to the window. The trees surrounding
the house were painted amber, red, and yellow. A breeze ruffled the branches,
and Julie wanted to air out the stuffy room.

What exciting story are you working on
next?
Right now I’m working on the idea of super powers. Are they inborn and not
developed or are they just a myth?

When did you first consider yourself a
writer?

I’ve been
writing (albeit poorly) since I was 15 years old. It wasn’t until 10 years ago
that I started self-publishing my own work and became an author. I will be publishing
all new work under my real name Michael Okon.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's
your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find
time to write?

Yes, my day
begins with research and development on the subject I’m working on. I research
and plot out my character arcs. After my wife and kids go to sleep I write till
midnight, every day.

What would you say is your interesting
writing quirk?

TV must be
on mute in the background. Either on Food Network, Travel Channel or a movie I
love.

As a child, what did you want to be when
you grew up?

A movie
director. The dream never died.

Anything additional you want to share
with the readers?

My book Monsterland was just picked up in a two-book
publishing deal that will be out late 2017.

Friday, April 21, 2017

During her
virtual book tour, Kate will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble
(winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for
a chance to win, use the form below.
To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops
and enter there, too!

Bio:

An
environmental scientist with over 20 years of experience, Kate Brandes is also
a watercolor painter and a writer of women’s fiction with an environmental
bent. Her short stories have been published in The Binnacle, Wilderness House
Literary Review, and Grey Sparrow Journal. Kate is a member of the Arts
Community of Easton (ACE), the Lehigh Art Alliance, Artsbridge, the
Pennwriters, and the Women’s Fiction Writers Association. Kate lives in a small
town along the Delaware River with her husband, David, and their two sons. When
she’s not working, she’s outside on the river or chasing wildflowers.

Welcome, Kate. Please share a little bit
about your current release.

This
story is Erin Brockovich meets Promised Land, about a Pennsylvania family
threatened by betrayal, financial desperation, old flames, fracking, and
ultimately finding forgiveness.

In the
novel, Green Energy arrives, offering the impoverished rural community of
Minden, Pennsylvania, the dream of making more money from their land by leasing
natural gas rights for drilling. But orchardist, Jack Pierson, fears his
brother, Wade, who now works for Green Energy, has returned to town after a
shame-filled twenty-year absence so desperate to be the hero that he’ll blind
their hometown to the potential dangers. Jack also worries his brother will try
to rekindle his relationship with LeeAnn, Jack’s wife, who’s recently left him.
To protect his hometown and to fulfill a promise to himself, Jack seeks out his
mother and environmental lawyer Stella Brantley, who abandoned Minden—and Jack
and Wade–years ago.

When LeeAnn’s parents have
good reason to lease their land, but their decision leads to tragedy, Jack must
fight to find a common ground that will save his fractured family, their land,
and the way of life they love.

What inspired you to write this book?

I’ve spent most of my
career, not as a writer, but as an environmental scientist. I didn’t start
writing creatively until I was in my mid-thirties. I’ve always loved stories
about complicated families and relationships. When
I learned about fracking through my environmental science career, one of my
first thoughts was that it would make a great metaphor in a novel about a
fractured family.

Excerpt from The Promise of Pierson Orchard:

“A
brand new black pickup was parked between LeeAnn’s red Chevy and Jack’s old
beater. A man stood beside it, with his hand raised in greeting, but he said
nothing more. Coming from the bright light of the barn into the dusk prevented
Jack from making out the man’s face. Jack stared in his direction. Some tug of
memory caused him to hesitate. There was something familiar about the slight
curl in his shoulders.

LeeAnn
emerged from the edge of the orchard and the man turned at the sound of her
boots on the gravel drive. “LeeAnn?” the man said.

She
stopped. “Wade Pierson?” She hesitated a moment more and then walked slowly toward
him. “Is it really you?”

There,
right in front of him, was his brother. Wade. Back after twenty years. He was
still alive, at least. Wade’s arms encircled LeeAnn.

Jack
clenched his fists and went back into the barn. He offloaded the fruit from the
wagon, bruising most of it. He washed apples with shaky hands and then crushed
them for the cider press. LeeAnn and Wade came through the doorway.

“Jack,
look who’s here.” Jack glanced up and then couldn’t take his eyes from his
brother’s face for a long moment. He wasn’t a sixteen year-old kid anymore.
He’d grown taller than Jack and filled out. Damn if he didn’t look even more
like their dad now, with that same dark red hair and fair skin. That curl of
the shoulder used to give Wade the look of someone unsure of whether he
belonged. But now Wade stood there smiling, like he would be welcome. Like he
could just show up after all this time with as much warning as he gave on the
night he left.”

What exciting story are you working on next?

I’m at work on my second novel, partly inspired by
Edward Abbey’s The Monkey Wrench Gang.
It will be another book club fiction novel with an eco-bent, but it’s a
completely different story from my first novel.

When did you first
consider yourself a writer?

That’s an
interesting question. Since I’ve spent my career as a scientist, it took me a
long time to think of myself as a writer and not to refer to my writing life as
a “hobby.” Honestly, it’s taken me more than a decade and a publishing contract
to truly feel like I could call myself a writer.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's
your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find
time to write?
I don’t write full time. I still work part-time as an environmental scientist.
I write when I can, which is usually in the early morning hours before the rest
of the world is awake.

What would you say is your interesting
writing quirk?

I like to
draft long hand with a notebook and pen. For whatever reason, the story comes
out deeper and more fully formed if I begin with paper and pen.

As a child, what did you want to be when
you grew up?
A geologist. Then I grew up and became a geologist. I’ve also always loved
fiction and words, so it seems inevitable now that I would figure out a way to
become a writer too.

Anything else you’d
like to share with the readers?

Bookclub Giveaway: In celebration of my upcoming book
launch, I'm offering 8 signed paperback copies, 8 small prizes, a $25 Amazon
gift card and a list of book-related discussion questions to one lucky book
club member to share with your club. All you have to do to enter is tell one
person about the book and sign up here.
Contest runs through my book launch date, April
22, 2017. The winner will be announced the following day! Good luck!

Thursday, April 20, 2017

Thomas Booker has roughnecked in the oilfields of Texas,
dined with royalty in Europe, forded crocodile-infested rivers in Africa, and
trekked the backwoods of Canada, among many other adventures. He currently is
helping to build a children’s clinic in Southeast Asia.

Welcome, Thomas. Please tell us a little bit about your current release.

The Persian Woman traces the struggle of an American
man to overcome his prejudice against Muslims. Main male character Jeffrey
Quinn is a former Navy SEAL whose wife was killed by a jihadist. Perhaps
understandably, he is embittered toward all Muslims. His attitude is challenged
when he comes into possession of information that a terror attack is being
trained on the United States. When he takes this information to the FBI he is
chagrined to learn that the agent assigned to the case is Parvin Sassani, the
Persian woman of the title. He refuses to work with her because she is Muslim.
He continues his recalcitrance until she puts her own career on the line to
save him from a false charge of homicide. From then on he helps her every way
he can, in the process discovering that she is a woman of great warmth, culture
and courage. He concludes that “she had been the best human being of us all.”

What was your inspiration for this book?

This book began with a disconnect between what I was seeing
in the media about Iranians (i.e. Persians) and what I was seeing in my
travels. The media invariably focuses on the rabid zealots such as the ruling
mullahs and the Revolutionary Guards. They make good villains for the daily
narrative. But the Iranians I was meeting were among the most cultured and
hospitable people I ever encountered. I decided to tell their story in The Persian Woman.

Excerpt from The
Persian Woman:

I was not a bigot, I told myself. A bigot is a person who
dislikes another because the other is different: Catholic, Jewish,
black-skinned or copper-skinned or yellow skinned, or simply from a part of the
world where not all the buildings are air-conditioned. A bigot burns crosses in
front yards, lynches innocent men, and blows up churches filled with children. A
bigot wears goofy uniforms and comic book masks and attends secret meetings
late at night to hear other bigots spout conspiracy fantasies or just tell
snide and nasty little jokes. A bigot takes a bath once a week in a galvanized
tub and brushes his teeth with his fingers. A bigot is a classless jerk who
hates for no reason. Well, that wasn’t me. I wasn’t a bigot. I just wasn’t
going to have anything to do with the woman, that’s all.

What exciting story are you working on next?

A venture by mercenaries into Mexico
to capture a wanted terrorist.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

When a publishing executive in New York phoned me and said
they wanted to publish my book. She said, in a complimentary way, that it was
“unbelievable” anyone could write a first novel like The Persian Woman. Nevertheless, independent spirit that I am, I
elected to go the Kindle self-publishing route. It’s my belief that traditional
book publishing, like traditional newspaper publishing, is fading into the
past. This belief has been bolstered recently by Kindle’s new service to make
e-books available in print-on-demand paperback format. The Persian Woman is now available in paperback on Amazon. It has a
great book design. Check it out.

Do you write full time?

Yes. In the mornings I do research and general background
boning-up. I write in the afternoons.

I
am blessed to have two wonderful children and five beautiful grandchildren.
They have kept me young at heart.

Writing
a book has been a lifelong dream. Science fiction and fantasy are what I love
to read and wanted to write about. However, I could never get the book out of
my head and onto paper. My grandchildren
have always told me I’m a big kid at heart and suggested I write a children’s
book. It resonated at once, the children’s genre is where my book belonged. The
next day I started typing and never stopped. As
a result, Sticky was born and grows in time.

You’re all invited to come take this journey with
Sticky and his friends.

What do you enjoy most about writing short stories?

Each of my characters are
a part of me and I feel like I am living the adventure with them. If there’s
comedy, suspense or even pain from injury, I feel it all when I write. Even
though my characters are a part of me. I feel a stronger connection with each
one of them. I find writing to be very therapeutic. When I find myself laughing
out loud while writing, I know something is going right, because it feels so
right.

Can you give us a little insight into a few of your
short stories – perhaps some of your favorites?

This is my first book. I
do have more planned after this 4-book series. I have another 3-book series
that continues where this one leaves off. There’s an ongoing story built into
all the adventures that happen throughout the series. Sticky has a way of
finding trouble and trouble almost always finds him. He can go from total klutz
to hero of the day.

One of my favorites is
when Sticky cracked the Liberty Bell with his head and another is when he saved
a little girl from a fire in the barn. Klutz to hero, that’s my Sticky.

What genre are you inspired to write in the most?
Why?

Children’s fiction. There
is not a doubt in my mind that I belong in this Genre. I am a kid at heart and
I have so much fun creating adventures, suspense and comedy.

Because my book has Sticky
going from the fantasy world and into the real world in Philadelphia – 1776. I
get to teach kids some of our history and they can have fun while they learn
it. To be honest, I learned a few things myself. I have Sticky reliving the
events and then I put footnotes that teach the real history. The second series,
‘Sticky and the Magical Portals’ is a trip to Boston in 1777. They make a trip
from Springfield to Boston and have many adventures along the way.

What exciting story are you working on next?

I have 10 other books in
their 1st stage of writing. They are all adding to Sticky’s adventures
for Sticky. These 10 books create 3 more series You get to read about how these
characters grow in many ways. There are also many life lessons for the kids as
Sticky does a good deed and is commended for it. He is also told when he is
doing something wrong and is corrected by Robyn, the leader of the group.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

I have always wanted to
write a Science Fiction novel like Enders Game or Lord of the Rings. I wanted
to create different worlds and have continuing stories about them. I always
wanted a continuing series. I have that kind of imagination.

The problem was getting the
book out of my head. I started many novels and stopped after a few chapters. It
just didn’t click. Back in 2011, I was sharing this story with my grandkids. They
suggested that I write a children’s book. Because I am a kid at heart, I should
be writing for kids. That was all I needed to hear. It hit me like a brick.

The next day when I was
driving to work, I had to pull over and take notes. A massive volume got
downloaded into my head. The ideas were floating around in my head and needed
to come out. And come out they did. I typed for months, morning, noon and
night. When it stopped and I went back to see what I wrote. I couldn’t believe
it. Hundreds of pages, mostly in 1 paragraph. I had my work cut out for me. So,
I divided and conquered the manuscript. I knew nothing of how to properly
format a children’s’ book. I had so much to learn. It was overwhelming and
thoroughly exciting at the same time. I loved the whole journey and continue to
love it today.

How do you research markets for your work, perhaps as
some advice for writers?

Google is everyone’s best
friend, no matter what you’re doing. I go from one writers site to another. I
don’t leave a site until I have learned something new. When you write, you must
keep reading. It’s probably your best teacher. I read books at home and listen
to audio tapes when I’m driving. I don’t listen to music or news stations on
the radio. It’s all about the books.

Believe it or not, writing
your book is the easy part. It gets difficult after that. There is so much to
learn. Never give up your dream.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

I would have to say that
the character flaws of my characters, are my own. They are truly a part of me.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to be an
astronaut. Soaring to the stars on an endless adventure. I do get to enjoy the
endless adventure. It’s here on earth and not in the stars. However, you never
know what the future may bring for Sticky. Anything is possible with this crazy
little elf.

Anything additional you want to share with the
readers?

I have found that my books
are good for all ages. I read them weekly to my grandchildren when they
couldn’t read. They couldn’t wait for the next part of the ongoing story. My
brother and sister read them and loved every bit of them. My father, who is 90,
read the series. When he finished, he came up to me and hugged me. He thanked
me for letting him feel young again for a brief moment in time.Thanks for being here today, Rene.

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About Me

I'm a NH native and love New England. I love writing about the region, exploring it on foot, on my bicycle, and in my car. There are so many small communities and fun and interesting people in this area, that I could be here a lifetime and not do all it is I want to do. :)

I'm a moderator at The Writer's Chatroom that hosts live chats with guest authors on Sunday nights 7-9PM EST. Join the e-mail list to get notifications of upcoming guests, then stop in and join the conversation!